Last weekend, in the last-minute main event of UFC 234, former UFC middleweight champ and undeniable MMA legend Anderson Silva came up short in an exciting, three-round battle with surging contender Israel Adesanya.

In the wake of this fight, Anderson Silva has made no secret of his respect and admiration for Adesanya. In fact, he even hopes to see the Nigeria-born New Zealander become a UFC champion in the future.

Silva shared his thoughts on his recent foil at the UFC 234 post-fight press conference (transcript via MMAjunkie).

“Israel is very fast, he’s young and he has a great future inside the UFC,” Silva said after UFC 234. “I talk to Israel about some things, ‘Please, keep straight and don’t lose your focus, because you have amazing talent. Just keep doing.’ Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But I’m very impressed because it was two generations inside the cage. It was a great show for everyone. I’m so happy.”

“I’m very impressed because Israel gave me a good challenge inside the cage,” Silva said. “For a long time I don’t feel the same challenge in my life. I’m very impressed. I respect Israel. He’s a great guy and has a future in this sport and hopefully he comes to fight for the belt and win.”

What do you think of these comments from Anderson Silva? Do you think there’s a UFC title win in Israel Adesanya’s future? Join the conversation in the comments section below

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 2/12/2019.